Stranded
by YesMaestro
Summary: A POTO story with elements of The Little Mermaid. What will happen when Erik Destler, the sole survivor of a shipwreck, is rescued by a mysterious, beautiful young woman? Read and Review!
1. Chapter 1

**Stranded**

Hello everyone! This is my first story, I hope you all enjoy it. I'll admit that this first chapter isn't anything amazing, I always find it hard to write the first of anything simply because you need to go into background information and describe everything, which isn't one of my strongest points. It's also relatively short, but I promise, chapter 2 is where it will pick up :)

I'm going to start off with an **M** rating just to make things easier and to be safe. In later chapters there will most certainly be **strong sexual content**, so beware if you're underage.

This story is going to be a Phantom of the Opera tale with some elements of The Little Mermaid, so it's obviously AU. The idea was inspired by one of my favorite stories, **Phantom's Beauty** by **Lady Rosesong** (an excellent read, check it out!), which is also a cross between Phantom and a Disney story.

* * *

**Chapter 1**

"I appreciate you all coming here, especially on such short notice." The man speaking cleared his throat, glancing out over everyone that had gathered in the grand hall in the center of the kingdom. He was obviously an aging man, for his face was wrinkled, his hair graying. However, where there should have been old and frail legs, was instead a powerful, navy blue tail.

In fact, everyone in the room he was in possessed such a tail, although colors and sizes differed greatly from person to person. These were the famous merpeople, the ones that sailors told tails about. No one believed such tails, except perhaps die-hard sailors, but the stories were infamous nonetheless.

"My watchers have just informed me that a ship is heading this way." A murmur spread through the crowd- of both excitement, and fear. In the back corner of the room, a small head popped up, and what was once boredom in her eyes was replaced with extreme interest.

"While I have made clear that all of you must stay away from the surface all the time, I must stress the importance of staying hidden now." The king's eyes- for he was clearly the king of these people, what with the crown and his powerful aura- drifted to that same back corner of the room, watching the small girl there with interest. "All I am asking is that everyone stay clear of the surface for these few weeks. If one person, just one person is spotted, then our entire kingdom is in danger. We all know that we are one of the last merpeople colonies, and we must protect ourselves as best as we can."

The meeting concluded after a few questions. The figure that had been hidden away in the corner of the room dashed to get away from the great hall quickly, swimming to the outskirts of the kingdom.

She had been right… the thing she had spotted on the horizon was a ship! Her father had clearly stated that no one was to go to the surface, ever, but Christine was not one to follow this rule. She was fascinated by the dry sand on the beach of the nearby deserted island, and she loved to lay out on one of the rocks and bathe in the sun.

Everyone in the kingdom knew of humans, but almost none of them had actually seen any. That, unfortunately, included Christine. As much as she wished that she could see a human, even speak to a human, she had never even seen a ship on the horizon.

Until a few days ago.

And although her father had just made an announcement to stay away from the surface, Christine found her tail moving gracefully through the water, pushing her up towards the sky.

Christine Daae was the only daughter of the king and queen of the merpeople, therefore making her princess, and the only chance of carrying on the noble line. Her parents had wanted more children, however, one day Christine's mother had been near the surface and had been spotted and killed by humans. Her father's heart had never completely recovered from the act and he began hating humans even more than he had before, forbidding anyone from going to the surface, ever.

That never stopped Christine, though. She was just as curious as her mother had been, always hoping for a glance of a ship, or even better, a glance at a human.

She looked extremely like her mother. She had deep brown hair that hung down to where her tail began at her lower back, and that remained in tight curls all the time. Her eyes were big and a startling blue color. At times, she found that her father could not look at her because of the resemblance to her mother. It was at times like that when Christine would head to the surface, to get away from everyone and try to stop her heart from missing her mother so much.

Her chest was covered by two shells that were big enough to cover herself decently, although unlike humans, nudity was not something merpeople worried about. They were much more laid back and just enjoyed spending time with one another and around the beauties of the sea.

However, unlike all of the other merpeople, the nobles possessed a special skill. If they wanted and needed to, they could replace their tales with legs, effectively turning themselves into a human. It was a trait they had so that if their kingdom was ever in danger, they could grow legs and travel across land to another sea, and begin a new kingdom. While they could switch between being human and being a merperson, neither Christine nor her father had done it. Christine knew that the first time you switched was extremely painful, and that it could sometimes be difficult to switch back. So, as much as she desired to see a human, she would rather see another one and not herself as a human.

As Christine's head neared the surface and finally popped out of the water, she gasped. The ship was much closer now. Before it had been just a dot on the horizon, but now she could see the colors of the sails. As she reluctantly turned away from the ship to glance about half a mile behind her at the deserted island, she could only assume one thing. The men on the ship were going to try to get off at this island, clearly thinking it to be inhabited and full of supplies.

It may not be their intent, but Christine hoped it was. She could easily hide behind one of the rocks near the edge of the island and spy on the humans. She was sure that one glance at them would quench her desire to see one, and that perhaps she would be able to follow her father's orders better.

* * *

"How long have we been on this damn ship? Three months? Did the captain not say that we would be on the ship for perhaps two months at the most?" Erik Destler ran his hand over the good side of his face, letting out a big sigh. "It's been too long since I've had a good woman on her knees in front of me…"

The man beside him chuckled and nodded. "Aye, me too, lad. But you can barely make out the outline of that island up ahead… surely there will be plenty of woman there willing to spread their legs for you."

Erik sighed again, turning away from the edge of the ship and walking towards the center, beginning to climb to the crow nest. "I hope so. And when I find a good woman, she's not leaving my bed until we set sail again."

Again, the man's best friend on the ship chuckled. "I hear ya. Hopefully we should be down to Africa soon to pick up those supplies and all that gold, and then we'll be back on our way to New York."

Erik said nothing in return, simply nodded, and continued on his way up the net to the lookout. He didn't doubt the fact that he would be able to get a woman in his arms once he reached this island- after all, he knew that the visible side of his face was extremely handsome. And if they were still reluctant, Erik had plenty of tricks up his sleeve that would make woman scream in pleasure. Yes, he was looking forward to docking.

The wind whipped across his face, blowing his black hair about, giving it a tussled look. The stark white mask that covered one half of his face stayed firmly in place, for it was designed to stay firmly in place against his face. As he reached the top of the net and climbed into the crow's nest, bright green eyes surveyed the horizon and the upcoming island. He believed he saw some splashing near the rocks that was close to the island, but he passed it off as a diving bird or some fish that had gotten too close to the surface.

Arriving at the island could not come soon enough.


	2. Chapter 2

**Stranded**

I know I didn't make it clear in the last chapter, but this story is set in the past, in the 1880's.

A couple of you have told me that you don't like Erik so far. Heh, I have to agree. Bit of a dick, huh? I guess I should have warned you that Erik is going to be pretty bitter for the first part of the story. You would be too if you were used to sharing a bed with someone every night and then having to wait three months! He also has a history that we'll all learn about it due time. But you never know what a woman can do to someone…

* * *

**Chapter 2**

With a deep sigh and one last look at the approaching ship, Christine dove back underneath the water, her tail moving her as fast as she could go back to her kingdom, her home. She had become an expert recently at making her way back undetected. After all, it wasn't too hard, considering that everything was open-air (or, as it so happens, open-water) and that everyone could swim as far away as they wanted. There were no penalties or laws about how far away a merperson could go from the kingdom. In fact, if they so desired, they could just leave altogether.

However, there were rules against going to the surface. There were no set laws against it, and therefore no official punishments. Although if a youth got caught going anywhere close to the surface, the parents usually took it into their own hands in the matter of punishing the child.

The only person Christine knew of that came to the surface was herself... and she knew it was selfish, but she liked it better that way. It felt like she had a secret of her own to keep. She knew what the sky looked like and others didn't. She knew what it felt like to breathe air, to feel the wind on your face, to not be constantly surrounded by water, and others didn't.

She had never felt land, though. Anytime she had completely removed herself from the water was just when she was laying out in the sun on a rock. She had never gone to the shore of the island, simply because she wouldn't have been able to go very far just relying on the strength of her arms before she would have had to retreat back to the water.

Just as Christine was entering the kingdom, she felt a strong hand wrap about her upper arm and pull her behind a large building, sheltering them from prying eyes.

"Christine, you know you're not supposed to go to the surface. And especially now, with that ship approaching! You know what happened to your mother! Do you want that to happen to you? Do you know what that would do to the King, to your father?"

Christine snatched her arm away from him, glaring her childhood friend through narrowed eyes. "You don't have to tell me what happened to my mother, Raoul, I know. And besides, when she was killed, she was right against the edge of the ship. From where I was, you couldn't even see the people on board. I could barely make out what color the sails were. I just wanted to know what a ship looked like, that's all."

"That's all? You know that's not all, Christine. You want to know what _humans_ look like. You're going to let them get closer and closer until one day they're going to spot you and kill you! Or, worse yet, capture you and take you to a… a… freak display or something! You're only seventeen, and you're too pretty to die young, Christine."

Christine sighed, crossing her arms across her chest. "You forget that I have something they don't have." She turned from him, swishing her tail a few inches from his face to create bubbles. "If they try to come near me," she continued, beginning to swim away, "I'll just swim away."

Raoul groaned, running his hands over his face before turning and swimming back to his home. He had known Christine since the day she was born, and they had always been best friends.

He had been just three when Christine was born, and, naturally, the entire kingdom was welcomed to come and meet the newborn. That had been the first time Raoul saw her. He would watch after her while she was still a baby whenever her parents were busy, and they quickly came to love Raoul as much as Christine did. The two of them spent most of their time together as children, dashing through the kelp fields and hiding amongst coral. They were still friends now, although to Raoul, Christine seemed to be growing distant recently. He could only hope that she would not do anything stupid.

As Christine swam away, her mind was calculating how soon it would be before the ship reached the island. It had been fairly far away, but depending on how strong the wind was going, they could reach the island by nightfall. She had no choice but to sneak to the surface again later that night to check their progress. She knew she was being silly, but this could be her one and only chance to ever see a human up close. That was one opportunity she wasn't willing to miss out on.

* * *

It was about 11 when Christine snuck from her chamber, silently moving through the halls of the great palace and then outside, moving quickly through the kingdom until she was on the outskirts, then began her long journey up. The ship had gotten much closer during the day. Although she had told Raoul that she was keeping her distance, she surfaced very close to the ship. It seemed some sort of party was going on, for there was much laughter and commotion above on the ship.

Her heart was hammering in her chest, but she found herself drawn to the boat. To her surprise, she found a small ledge on the side of the boat that gave her the perfect view. She rested her arms on the wood, peering inside at the scene.

There were men everywhere, some whose feet were very close to her face. This was closer than she had ever hoped to get to one human, let alone this many! While she knew she should be frightened, instead she was in awe at the sight of all of them

There were a few men in the center of the deck, dancing about and laughing. Off to the side were a few men with instruments, laughing as well and providing the music for the dancers. Everyone seemed to be laughing and drinking and singing, save for one man, almost directly across from her, leaning on the rail of the other side of the ship. At first, she feared he would see her, but then she figured that the angle of the ledge she was leaning on would keep her hidden, although she could see him perfectly. While he was not singing or dancing or making himself look like a fool like the others, there was a large smile on his face. His broad arms were crossed across his powerful chest, that Christine could see a bit of thanks to his white shirt that opened at the top.

But that wasn't the most interesting thing about the man. No, what Christine found the most intriguing about him was the stark white mask that covered half of his face. He was incredibly handsome even without the mask, she would say that, but the mask seemed to add to his mysteriousness. He gave off a vibe of power and control, and the mask only helped enhance that vibe. Christine found herself drawn to him, and her eyes were locked on him until the party finally died down, about an hour or two later.

Just as she was reluctantly pulling herself away from the ship, she heard something that would most certainly help her tomorrow. She heard a man that she could only assume was the captain tell someone else that they planned to sail just a bit closer tomorrow, and then possibly row in a little later, around evening. Even though Christine had told herself that one look at the humans would be enough, she knew now that it would not be. She would come tomorrow and watch as they rowed in and explored her island (for all the merpeople thought of the island as their island, since no one else knew of it), and soon they would be gone once they discovered that it was deserted.

Christine pushed away from the ship and hurried back to her kingdom, realizing that she had been away far longer than was originally intended. She found her mind wandering to the masked man. What was hiding beneath that white mask? Or did he wear it simply to add to his mystery? She was desperate to find out, although she knew she never would. Theories were already forming in her head of what might have happened to him. Burned by a falling rafter? Hot oil thrown on him by a previous lover? Crazy ideas were spurning in her head, ideas that she easily found herself believing.

She needed a little excitement in her life. It had been boring the past seventeen years, save for a few moments, both welcome and unwelcome (such as the death of her mother). This much excitement, she knew, would be enough to last her at least a year.

She settled back into her shell, pulling the lid shut. Everyone slept in these oversized clam shells, to keep them from floating away as they slept. As the darkness came over her, Christine's mind was filled with mystifying images of a strange masked man…

* * *

Darkness was just beginning to fall, and whispered curses could be heard throughout the ship from the captain. There were treacherous looking clouds looming in the sky, and a storm right now could be extremely dangerous, considering how close they were to the island, and, especially, to the rocks he knew were acting like a halo to the island.

A storm was the _last_ thing he needed right now, especially since most of the men on the ship, including himself, were still hung-over from the night before.

Most of the men onboard were already asleep for the night, even though it was barely evening. A few stayed awake, whether to keep watch or just because they didn't feel like sleeping. Destler was one of the ones that just didn't want to sleep.

He was leaning against the edge of the ship, his eyes scanning the island up ahead. How was it that there were no docking stations? Was it such a remote island that they would have to row in? It was barely eight o'clock and still, he could see no one on the shores of the island.

Perhaps this was just the dud side of the island. Besides, he could see rocks close to the shore, so that was probably why there were no docks on this side.

What he didn't know, however, was that those rocks came out further then anyone believed.

In fact, although they were still a good half mile away from the island, they were beginning to get dangerously close to some deadly rocks.

And if that weren't bad enough, at that exact moment, a lightning bolt lit up the sky.

Immediately, shouts could be heard from everyone that was awake, and preparations for a storm began. All the sleeping crew were woken up and they, too, began helping, while the captain started to shout orders over the chaos. A growl of thunder sounded, and quite suddenly, the rain began. It was slow at first, a few droplets here and there, but it quickly escalated into a full out downpour.

Erik was running around, securing cords and barking orders to those who were doing essentially nothing to help. Storms at sea could be fatal, everyone knew that, but storms this close to the island and to the rocks could mean certain death to them all.

As he turned, he cursed under his breathe him he realized that the sails were still full. "Take them down, take them down! Now! NOW!" His shouts were, however, drowned out by another roar of thunder and a massive wave overtaking the ship.

Then, the unthinkable happened. A sudden strike of lightning hit the mast, and the force was so powerful the large wooden pole cracked and split from the ship, falling onto its side. The lightning caused a fire to start, despite the rain and wind. The flames spread quickly, and as Erik looked around, he could already see several lifeless bodies on the deck of the ship. The captain was shouting orders to abandon ship, to lower the lifeboats and climb aboard those.

But Erik couldn't leave until he was sure that the ship was empty. Fighting his way through the flames, he made it to the sleeping quarters, checking for any that were hiding or, somehow, still asleep.

When he was satisfied that the ship was empty, he left the sleeping quarters, only to be faced with a bigger fire than before. It was taking over the entire ship, and the only way to the sea was through some of the flames.

Just at that moment, a severe wind blew out the glass behind him, and one of the shards cut across his side. Destler groaned, his hand flying to his side. He cursed as he noticed that the cut seemed to be rather deep. He made his way through the flames, trying to hop to spots that did not have much fire, until he was by the side, getting ready to hop off and climb onto the lifeboats with the crew.

Thanks to the storm, the ship had been thrown way off course. Too late did Erik notice the rocks behind all the tiny boats the men were in. They were thrown against the rocks violently, and all went beneath the water. He could only hope that they would be able to surface again.

As he was preparing to jump ship, one of the two remaining standing masts snapped. Erik didn't see it until the last moment. It hit him across the head and he felt himself falling off the ship, darkness coming over him.

* * *

Christine knew even before she neared the surface that a powerful storm was happening. She swam to the surface as quickly as her pink tail would take her, praying that everyone was safe.

What she saw when her head came above the water was frightening. The main mast had already broken and was laying on its side, and the entire ship was going up in flames. She could see boats nearing the rocks that carried the crew. Oh, thank goodness, they were all safe! Her eyes scanned them all for the masked man, but to her dismay, she could not spot him. Perhaps she was just skipping over him?

She saw the rocks before the boats hit. A small gasp could be heard and, forgetting all cautiousness, she dashed to the boats to warn them to watch out. She didn't make it in time.

The boats were smashed violently against the rocks, and even over the whipping wind, the pouring rain, and the crackling fire, she could hear cracks amongst the rocks. She swam towards them, looking for any moving bodies… but there were none.

Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a falling figure from the debris. Turning, she saw a splash in the water, and as she dove under, she saw the masked man… bleeding, motionless, and sinking quickly.

But something in her told her to save this man. He could not possibly be dead, not from that cut in his side. Christine dove under the water, making a mad dash for his sinking body.

As she neared him, she did not hesitate to wrap her arms about his shoulders, and beginning to tug him to the surface. He was heavier than she would have imagined, so it took a bit of effort. Thank goodness for the storm, or else all of the blood could have possibly attracted sharks.

It took a good ten minutes to reach the island. The storm seemed to have just gotten worse. Lightning and thunder were very close together, and the rain was harder than it had been before. Christine did her best to drag the stranger onto shore, even though at one point she had to let him go and use her arms to drag her further up onto the shoreline, before pulling him up farther.

Even then, his feet were still in the water. He was laying out in the open, and Christine knew he needed shelter and for someone to look at his wound, to make sure it did not get infected or that he did not lose too much blood.

One look down at her tail and Christine knew what she had to do. But could she? How did it work? She had never done this before… and no one had exactly explained how it worked…

So she closed her eyes and imagined herself with legs, willing everything she had into giving herself legs. Suddenly, an excruciating pain began to spread, from the tip of her tail and moving up to her waist, where the tail ended. She felt as if she were being ripped in two, like there was a fire raging in her tail. A scream left her lips, and she buried her face in her arms, lying motionless on her stomach. It took a few moments for the pain to become bearable enough to begin to move again. As she lifted her head, she was amazed at what she saw.

Where there was usually a pretty pink tail and fins were now two legs. Legs! They seemed incredibly long to her, and strange looking, with weird things at the bases that she believed to be called _feet_. A sort of skirt that cut off at her upper thigh covered her lower half, and while it looked like a skirt to anyone else, underneath were a type of shorts that connected so that she would be able to move more freely and not completely expose herself.

Christine could not take time to admire her new legs for too long, however, for she knew she had to do something to save this masked man.

Her hands found the sand and she slowly pushed herself to her feet, only to wobble helplessly and have to grasp a tree for support. Now, how well could this work? Thankfully, she noticed that she would not have to build any sort of shelter. From where she stood she was not getting wet, and as she looked up, she noticed the sort of canopy that these short trees provided.

Mustering all her strength, she moved to sit on her 'knees' and grabbed the man from underneath his arms, pulling him up to be in the shelter of the trees.

The wound in his side only seemed to be getting worse, for by this point, practically his entire shirt was covered with blood. With nimble fingers, she pulled his shirt from his trousers and pulled it off his arms, lifting him up as best as she could so that she could get the fabric underneath him and make a type of bandage, one that would suffice until the rain subsided.

Once upon a time, she knew that people used to live in a village that was further inland. It was deserted now, but Christine had a hunch that there would still be supplies there, supplies that she could go and get once the storm had passed.

For now, all she could do was wait. Her new legs still hurt from the transformation, and she knew that she wasn't near ready to switch back to a mermaid again. Besides, he was going to need her help, he was going to need food and water and medical supplies once the storm died.

Christine laid down on the dry sand, letting her eyes close. Although she had not intended to fall asleep for fear that the human would wake before her, within minutes, she had slipped into the dark peacefulness of sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

When Christine's eyes fluttered open, the very first thing she saw was the face of the human. Gasping, she bolted into a sitting position and scooted away from him as a first reaction. It was only then that all the events of the previous night floated back to her mind. Her eyes drifted down to her tail, only to see… legs? Legs! Yes, now she remembered!

Her masked stranger had been about to drown when she had come to his rescue. And in order to have completed that rescue, she had to transform to human… which brought her to now.

Thankfully, he had not woken up before her. His side seemed to have healed somewhat overnight, but he still needed medical care.

Grasping a tree for support, Christine raised herself onto her two feet, then let go slowly. Well, she could stand on her own. That was a good thing. As she took a step, she realized that as long as she was close by to some trees, she should be able to make her way to the village without falling too much.

Walking was actually fun. Although her legs still felt weak and as if they would give out from underneath her at any moment, she enjoyed placing one in front of the other and making her way through the woods.

Speaking of which… where was she going? She had no idea whatsoever where to village was, although she did know that her island was huge. She could easily get lost and spend days trying to find her way out! After about ten minutes of wondering aimlessly through the trees, she believed she saw a worn path a little to her left. A smile spread over her lips as she made her way to that path, and then began following it.

All around her were the sounds of the forest, sounds she had never heard before: birds, insects, creatures rolling around in the leaves surrounding her. Not once did she become frightened… instead, all of the things that she had never had the chance to experience fascinated her.

Her excitement was short-lived, however, for she quickly stumbled upon the village. Literally. There was a rusty bucket blocking the entrance of the path to the open space of the village, and Christine's foot got caught on the metal, sending her sprawling to the ground.

"Uhhhhg…" Moaning quietly, she sat herself up, her eyes darting to the throbbing in her foot. There was a cut there, nothing too serious, but more than a scratch. For someone that already could not walk well, a scratch on the foot could not be a good thing.

She had to get the supplies for the human, though, so she pushed down her pain and looked up at the village around her. There were several tiny houses, all handcrafted from wood and mud and lifted off the ground about two feet by bamboo supports. In the center of the circle of homes was a fire pit, and to the back, behind the furthest houses, Christine could see what she assumed had used to be a garden. A garden! She had read about those. Beautiful patches of colorful flowers, as well as fresh vegetables and fruits. The entire thing seemed to be like something out of a book, the more she thought about it. The garden, the fire, the homes… it all seemed so surreal.

Limping towards the fire pit, Christine began making a mental list of what she should look for. Any food, though she doubted there would be any seeing as the place had been deserted for quite some time. Some bandages, perhaps, and maybe some stuff to help build him a shelter?

Nearly an hour later and with full arms, the girl was on her way back to the beach. She had managed to find a hut with plenty of bandages and even some extra clothes. In addition, she had picked up the bucket she had previously tripped over. There had also been some wild fruits growing along the edges of the clearing, which would provide food until she could find more.

Soon enough, she could see the beach again, and she warily peeked out between the trees to see if the human had woken up. Much to her surprise, he was still lying in the same position she had left him. He must have really been tired if he had slept all this time… or perhaps he was just used to sleeping late.

Placing all of her newly acquired things down, the first thing she set out to do was to tend to his bandages. She removed the old shirt she had tied around him last night, then hobbled to the sea to scoop up some sea water with her bucket.

After wiping down his side gently with a cloth soaked in the water, she rewrapped a bandage around him. At one point, he stirred, causing Christine to freeze with fright. His eyes never opened, however, so Christine quickly finished tending to him. Once that was finished, she placed all of the fruits she had picked in the bucket, finally sighing as she realized she had done all she could do.

Her eyes slowly raised to his face, and for the first time, she really looked at him. He had a hard jaw and some stubble that lined his chin and cheeks. To Christine, he seemed very handsome. The men she was always around didn't look anything like him… they're all clean, shaved, and, of course, didn't have legs. Her hand lifted hesitantly, running along the revealed side of his face, feeling the rough skin around his forehead and the stubble down near his chin.

Her hand bumped the mask, and she bit her lip. What was beneath it? Why did he wear it? She felt her fingers slipping underneath it, pulling it up ever so slightly…

No. No, she couldn't do that. He wore it for a reason, and whatever that reason, she didn't want to know. She wanted to remember him in her mind as the man with the mysterious mask. If she removed the mask, that mystery would be gone.

Perhaps she should return to her home. However, when she began to think of turning back to a mermaid, she knew she couldn't put herself through that pain again. Not yet. Her legs still ached from the day before, and she also had that cut on her foot which added to the pain. She would wait a little longer.

A debate was raging in Christine's mind. What would she do when he woke? Would she hide? Would she just sit there and let him see her? Would she speak? Or would she remain silent? She was anxious for him to wake. What would he be like? Was he a cruel, hateful person? For some reason, Christine had a hard time picturing him like that, especially after seeing his large grin during the party on the ship. At the same time, however, he didn't look like someone who was shy and hid his feelings.

Before too long, Christine found herself growing tired of waiting for him to wake, and a song burst forward from her lips. It was a song that held a special place in her heart, the song that her mother used to sing to her when she was a baby and then, as a child. Now, however, with her hand still touching the man's face, it felt like she was singing it to him. Like she was singing it for him.

* * *

Surely he must be dead. He faintly remembered the shipwreck, seeing the crew smash into the rocks, and then the dark water enveloping him. And now, he was roused from his sleep by a singing angel. The voice he heard was so pure and so beautiful that it could only belong to one of God's angels. As he shifted his body ever so slightly, though, a small pain shot through him. There was no pain in Heaven, at least, not that he had heard of. So he was… not dead?

He felt something move against his face, something small and warm. Erik knew what it was immediately.

His arm shot up and he gripped the hand that was on his cheek tightly, pulling the person down and rolling on top of them at the same time, trapping them beneath him. What he saw underneath him, however, was _not_ what he had expected.

Beneath him was possibly the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Full red lips, large blue eyes, long, wild brown hair that framed her face perfectly. Before he had time to say anything, however, her knee connected with his groin and he groaned loudly, his arms going limp.

She pushed away from him, scrambling to her feet and running about two steps before she fell. He could hear her cry out in desperation and then moving to her feet again, managing to go about five feet away from him before she collapsed again.

Growling and ignoring the pain in his groin, he pushed himself to his feet as well, striding over to her quickly and grabbing her by the arm, pulling her up and pinning her against a nearby tree. He could not just feel, but see her trembling with fear as she turned her head away from him, her eyes shut tight.

Erik once again had the opportunity to let his eyes roam over her. She was barely dressed- two shells covered what looked to be delicious breasts, and a sort of skirt covered her lower half, although it barely covered her thighs, revealing her long, creamy legs to his eyes. In society it was not acceptable for woman to show their ankles… and here was this gorgeous creature, hardly wearing any clothes at all. The very sight of her made his loins stir.

"Please… don't hurt me."

Those four words made Erik's eyes move from her body to her face, and although she was turned away from him, he could see how frightened she was. Honestly, she could not be a threat. She could barely walk without falling over. His side was beginning to ache as well, so he dropped his hands from her arms, stumbling slowly back towards where he had lain before. "Who are you?"

Instead of answering his question, however, she quickly made her way out onto the rocks that stretched from the shore to the sea, and once she was at the end of the rock 'runway,' she dove into the water, disappearing from sight.

With a sigh, Erik sat down and leaned back against a tree, taking in the sight around him for the first time. Out in the sea he could see the floating pieces of wood from his shipwreck, and he could also see the rocks he remembered his crew smashing into. Grimacing, he turned his head away from the sight and looked at the island. Well, he assumed it was an island. And it appeared to be deserted. He'd have to do some exploring sometime soon, to make sure there wasn't anyone else on this piece of land. His eyes landed on a bucket close to him, a bucket filled with all sorts of fruits and berries. A loud growl came from his stomach as he realized just how hungry he was.

But that wasn't all. There were also some clothes nearby, as well as what looked like bandages. Looking down at his shirtless chest, he realized that his midsection was covered with a white bandage. So this girl was not only harmless… she had also helped him. And he had scared her away! Ah well, she had just jumped into the water, she would have to be back sometime soon. When she did come back, he would try not to be so intimidating. Perhaps, after not too long, he could lure her into his arms… She certainly was beautiful, and he could see himself taking her again and again on the warm sand.

* * *

How could she have let that happen? She should have stepped away when she felt him stir, she should have run away right then, but she couldn't pull herself away from him. And then, before she knew what had happened, she was pinned beneath him.

She had managed to raise up her leg and hit him somewhere, and it must have worked for her went limp and she had her chance to escape. Of course, with her newly acquired legs, escaping wasn't exactly something she could do very quickly. He had caught up before too long and pinned her against a tree, before letting her go not long after.

Now, she was in the sea, swimming deeper and deeper down into the water. Swimming was somewhat difficult without her tail, but she adjusted to her legs in the water quickly. While she couldn't move as fast as she could with a tail, she could certainly move faster in the water with her legs than she could on land.

As she neared the kingdom, she paused, then swam behind a large rock planted on the sea floor. What if she couldn't do this? What if she was forever stuck as a human? She couldn't let those thoughts pass her mind. So, with a deep breathe, she squeezed her eyes shut and imagined herself with her tail, pictured her legs coming together to form her pretty pink tail again. She felt a great pain in her lower half (though not as painful as it was the first transformation), and when she looked down again, her tail was back in place.

Thank Heavens! A great smile spread across Christine's face and she danced around in the water, swishing and swimming every which way for a while, before she swam back to her kingdom. No one questioned her being gone for a day- it was understood that sometimes merpeople got antsy and had to go exploring on their own. Overall, Christine was ecstatic to be back, but at the same time, she felt her mind drifting towards the masked man on the beach above.

From behind another great rock near to the kingdom, an evil chuckle could be heard. So the king's one and only daughter had turned herself into a human? And for God only knows what? From behind the rock slithered the sea witch of the deep, octopus-like tentacles covering her bottom half, giving her a very intimidating appearance.

Oh, she could have fun with this. There could only be one reason the girl had decided to turn herself into a human. The very same reason Christine's mother had given herself legs, if Carlotta could remember correctly. Like mother like daughter, she supposed, and this series of events could work out perfectly in her favor.

Before too long, the whole kingdom would be hers. It would just take a little patience…

* * *

**A/N:** You didn't think I'd completely forgotten about the sea witch, did you? Don't worry, while she doesn't play the same role as she does in the movie, she will have a big part in this story. Sorry for the long wait!


	4. Chapter 4

**Stranded**

Hey guys! So I know, it's been waaaaaaaay too long (over two years!), but summer is upon us and I've found some time to write again! I went back and reread the first three chapters (something I recommend you doing before you read this chapter), so I am nice and refreshed and ready to go!

Also, I wrote before that when Christine transformed, she was already wearing a skirt/short thing. Scratch that. She's nude when she transforms (save for the shells, of course). Makes things more interesting! It won't seem like that has changed in this chapter, but I'll elaborate more next chapter, trust me!

* * *

**Chapter 4**

Pain was the first thought that crossed through Christine's mind as it roused her from her slumber. A throbbing pain coming from her fin, at the bottom of her tail. Groaning from both being tired and being in pain, Christine pushed open her clam shell and swam up.

Bad idea. The pain that had before only been a light throbbing seemed to erupt throughout her entire tail, and she stilled immediately. As her eyes fell upon the source of the pain, another groan left her lips. Great. A large cut made its way from the center of her fin and up a bit onto her tail. At first, all Christine could do was stare at it. What had she grazed that had made this cut, too shallow to be considered a gash but too deep to be considered a scratch?

Of course. The bucket. Scavenging the village for supplies, she had tripped and cut her foot on a bucket. A rusty, old bucket. But that cut had transferred to her mermaid body? Upon closer examination of the cut, she realized it was perhaps worse than she had initially thought. The edges were puffy and curled out, oozing a light yellow liquid very slowly into the surrounding water that Christine had not noticed at first because of the lighting in the room. Her mind immediately went into excuse mode. What could she tell her father? She cut it passing by a rough coral edge? A shark nearly got her? Whatever it was, it had to be believable. King Gustav was going to be very suspicious of his daughter's activities, what with the passing of the boat and her uncanny interest in humans.

That worry, however, was short lived when she realized that it was proving difficult to swim. Moving her tail even slowly was painful, so moving it at a pace fast enough for her to swim would be almost unbearable. She could attempt swimming with just her arms, but that could take all day! Sighing, she maneuvered her way back inside her bed in her clam, but left the lid open. "Father! Papa!" Yet the figure that appeared at her doorway moments later was not her father. In fact, it was possibly the last person she wanted to see at that moment.

"Christine? What are you still doing in bed at this hour? Up all night? Doing what, may I ask?" Raoul let himself in, crossing his muscular arms and staring down at her with a look of disapproval, as if he knew where she had been. He was right, of course - he knew Christine too well. "You were gone all day, and I looked everywhere you usually go. The sunken ship. The coral your mother used to take you to see. The jellyfish grounds. All empty."

"Raoul, save me the lecture, please. There are plenty of places I could have gone where you would never find me if I really desired to get away from you." She smiled slowly at this, then grimaced at turned her face towards her tail. "As it so happens, I have a reason for being stuck in bed."

With that, she motioned down towards her tail, which she lifted so Raoul could see it easier. His reaction was exactly what she had expected - a gasp, a mumbled curse, and then he was down by her side. "What happened? Christine! What did you do!"

Attempting to not get increasingly frustrated with him, Christine simply let out a controlled sigh and pinched the bridge of her nose between her fingers. "I... I was swimming fast and it drug across some of the sharp corals in the coral fields. Could you please not yell so loud? I've got a headache."

"That's a lie and you know it, Christine, you just admitted you weren't at the coral fields. Where were you? Did you go to the surface _again_? Did the humans do this to you?" Despite his anger and concern, Raoul tried to tone down his voice. It did seem like Christine looked a bit paler than usual.

"No matter what I tell you, it's not going to be what you want to hear." She would have elaborated more if her father had not arrived at that moment.

Gustav was a lively man, almost always wearing a smile and laughing a deep, hearty laugh, so long as nothing was amiss in the kingdom. "Still asleep, are you Christine? Goodness gracious girl, up you go, you've got things to do today you know!" It was only then that his eyes landed upon her cut. His eyes grew wide and his mouth dropped open slightly, concern creasing his face. "What happened! Sebastian, get a doctor immediately!" He was by Christine's side then, and Raoul moved out of the way quickly, but his eyes never left Christine's face, which seemed to be growing paler by the minute.

"She was in the coral fields. That's where she was all day yesterday. She told me she cut it but it didn't seem like a big issue until she woke up and saw it. I was just telling her she needs to lay down and get some rest... maybe drink something..." His eyes met with hers then, and she gave him a silent look of thanks.

"Papa, I'm fine. Just a little nick, really. Get the doctor to patch me up and I'll be good as new!" The doctor arrived then, shooed Raoul and the King off to the side, and set to work with a grimace on his face.

"'S been a while since I seem somethin' like this. There's nothing much I can do except apply a serum and bandage it and hope that an infection doesn't set in - or hasn't already," he added with a look to Christine's white face. "And you'll need rest. Bed, all day."

Christine huffed and crossed her arms while the doctor bandaged her up. It's not like she could complain that she had to leave so she could go see a human she had saved, could she? Besides, her head was starting to feel a little dizzy. When her room was finally empty, she laid her head back on her pillow and almost immediately fell asleep.

Her dreams were filled with bright, vivid, dancing colors. One minute she was standing in a room filled with pink and blue flames, lapping at her skin, burning her up, and the next she was surrounded by green and white ice, so cold that it felt as if she were laying naked and covered with ice. Back and forth, these dreams went, sometimes burning, sometimes freezing, always painful...

* * *

He should have gone with her. He should have followed her yesterday. He knew her better than anyone, and he knew that she went after the humans. And he knew that they were responsible for this, somehow.

It was the middle of the night and Christine was still asleep in her bed, a fever raging through her body. An infection had, in fact, set in, and it was fairly rare amongst the merpeople that the doctor was at a bit of a loss for what to do. He did his best, giving her a pain medication and as much protective medicine as he dare dose her with. Now, all they could do was wait while the girl tossed and turned in her bed all night long, and hope that the fever would break. Christine's father had waited with her most of the night, too, and only recently had he gone to get some sleep. He couldn't handle seeing his little girl like this anymore.

But Raoul had to stay with her. He felt fully responsible for Christine's condition, even though he still had no idea how it had happened. Cut by one of the humans, perhaps? Speared? Thanks goodness she hadn't been killed. Losing a wife to humans was bad enough; the king would die of heartbreak if he lost his one and only child to them as well. And Raoul would have died, too. He couldn't even begin to think of a life without Christine in it.

He missed the days when they were best friends, where she would look at him and smile and it would brighten his entire day. She had been increasingly distant for the past few months, not wanting to play as much, never smiling as much as she had. He cherished the smiles he could get now - they lit up her face and seemed to make all of his worries seem insignificant.

Her distance could possibly have something to do with the fact that he was in love with her and was pretty poor at hiding it. Sure, he had never said anything and he had definitely never tried to act upon his feelings, knowing Christine didn't feel the same way, but sometimes the things he would do, and how he would say things... well, he was never any good at hiding his feelings. But if swallowing his love for her meant he could continue that carefree friendship they had shared before, he could do that. Being friends with Christine and never being together with her was better than not even being friends with her. But it was so difficult to disguise his love when she looked the way she did, acted the way she did..

Raoul was there all throughout the night and for the majority of the next day, watching over Christine, trying to calm her father, all the while reassuring himself she would be okay. She didn't show many signs of improvement, but then again there wasn't any reason to suggest she was getting worse. They just had to... wait. By now the entire kingdom knew, and merpeople would stop by every now and again to check on Christine and offer their condolences. The people loved Christine - she was kind, fair, and a gracious princess. It was as if she forgot her status in the kingdom sometimes because she talked and laughed with everyone, shared stories, and always did her best to make sure everyone was happy. The people wanted to return this favor, and they offered prayers that she would get better quickly.

She was the same all through the next night, tossing, turning, mumbling, crying out sometimes. The doctor came periodically to check her condition and switch out the bandages on her tail, reapplying the serum and dosing Christine up with more and more medicine.

It was around five in the morning when the fever finally broke. Raoul had been almost asleep, placed in the chair by Christine's bedside, bent over her bed, resting his head on his arms to get some rest. Christine's slowed tossing had made him lift his head, and when he felt her forehead, he could have swam laps for joy. He quickly called upon the doctor and King Gustav to let them know.

Within an hour, Christine's eyes fluttered open. She was greeted by the sight of the doctor, her father, and her best friend leaning over her with worry etched into their eyes, but a smile plastered on their faces. "My God," she muttered, "what a sight to wake up to."

Everyone chuckled, relieved that she seemed okay and still had her blatant sense of humor. "Princess, you were out for two days with a fever. An infection had set into your wound, but it seems to be healing up okay now, but I'm afraid it will leave a scar." Christine shrugged at the doctor's words. So what, she would have a mark there. Maybe it would make her look cooler, more dangerous. That could be a plus. "I've never seen coral cuts do such damage... must have been a mighty old piece of coral," he added as he began to pack his things, shooting a knowing look towards Christine. He wouldn't question her story, and even if he did, he had no other plausible explanation... but he did know that she was probably not explaining everything she could. "I recommend you stay in bed today and tonight to let the scarring set and the medicine do its work. You'll be very weak, no doubt, and probably very tired as well. Tomorrow morning we'll see how your swimming is. Should be able to manage fairly well, especially thanks to our accelerated healing rate. If you were a human, you would be stuck in bed for a week at least." Merpeople injuries tended to heal at a much faster rate than that of humans, thanks in part to the saltwater surrounding them as well as their genome.

The day passed without much excitement, as did the night. The pain ebbed the longer she lay in bed, and she could feel strength slowly returning to her weakened limbs. The next morning, when the doctor came to help her swim around the room, she found she could easily move about with minimal pain. She was approved by the doctor to go about her normal activities, but just keeping care not to snag her tail on anything. And, thought he didn't say it, Christine knew it was probably best to keep her tail, for now; the thought of the man on her island intrigued her and she wasn't sure if she would be able to stay away.

* * *

Damn cut. Damn rocks, damn shipwreck, damn island, damn everything! It had been three days since he had woken up on this island. The girl that had sung to him had yet to reappear like he had assumed she would. He wished he could leave this tiny scrap of beach, but he didn't dare venture in the woods and get lost; besides, he wasn't sure how far he could get with the cut in his side that he was still taking care of. Any hope of any other survivors dimmed with each day, and now he doubted there were any at all. If there had been, they would have washed up near enough that he would be able to see them. He had seen that boat crash into the rocks - violently. There was very little hope for any of them. Still, once he was better, it would be helpful to swim out to the wreck site and see if he could salvage anything.

If it weren't for the appearance of the mysterious girl, Erik would have assumed this island deserted. But the woman that had bandaged him and provided him with food had to live somewhere, and surely she lived with at least a few others. So where were they? Once he was completely healed he would go on a trek through the woods; for now, he was content to stay on the beach, especially since it seemed like the girl had gathered enough food to last him quite some time.

Why, though? Why go through all this trouble to ensure his survival and then stay away? True, he had been a bit... forward, last time he saw her, but she caught him off-guard. Of course he was going to act defensively. If he ever did see her again, though, he made a note to apologize to her.

He had managed to gather a bit of wood, too, and start a fire so that he could boil some seawater to drink, and eventually to cook some fish once he found a way to catch them. Oh, this would all be so much easier if that blasted woman could just take him back to her home and provide him with some necessities that she surely had to spare.

The snap of a twig caught his attention and he stood, perhaps to quickly, and spun to face the sound. His side protested the sudden movement but his interest quickly caused the pain to become forgotten. There was a tiny, scared gasp that was barely audible.. but he had heard it. And he had also seen a few curls disappear behind a nearby palm tree. He stood completely still for a few moments, just staring, waiting. And then her face appeared.

When she saw that he was watching her, she turned and took off. Forgetting his earlier vow, he dashed after her, but like last time the chase didn't last long. The girl tumbled to the sand after only two or three strides, landing with a soft 'oomph' and then a frightened gasp as she turned and faced the man slowly approaching her. Erik didn't like the look of fear in a woman's eyes - especially not one clad only in shells and some torn cloth that only reached mid-thigh - so he stopped advancing and held his hands up. He needed her to trust him. "Look, I'm not going to hurt you. I owe you my life." It was true. The last thing he remembered was blacking out as he fell into the sea... and then he woke up to a singing angel with a nursed cut and plenty of food. When she said nothing, he continued. "What's your name?"

Still nothing. "I'm Erik. Erik Destler." He could have added Duke of Ravenwood, his official title, if he wanted, but somehow he knew that would fail to impress her. She continued to just stare at him for a few more moments, before the tiny beginnings of a smile began to blossom on her face.

"Christine."


End file.
